New two-year Sussex deal for promising Wernars

South African all-rounder Kirk Wernars is staying at Sussex. The 20-year-old has agreed a new two-year contract after a quietly impressive first season at Hove.

English qualified because he holds a Dutch passport, Wernars played in three County Championship games and scored a half-century on his debut against Worcestershire at Horsham in August. He also played in the Friends Life t20.

Coach Mark Robinson said: “The early signs are that Kirk has the makings of a really good all-rounder and we are delighted he has committed himself to Sussex.”

Wernars said: “It’s fantastic for me to sign a new contract and I’m really excited to be here for another two years. This season was a learning curve and it was great to see how the club operates both on and off the field.

“I’ve now got time to re-assess and improve my game over the winter and I’ll be aiming to make more of an impact in the first team across all three formats next season.”

Wernars is the second Sussex player to agree a new contract this week, batsman Luke Wells having signed a deal until 2014 after an impressive season when he scored three Championship hundreds including 174 against Yorkshire in May.